‘Press EVM button with love’: Prashant Kishor’s comeback to Amit Shah on Delhi – assembly elections

Prashant Kishor, the first from the Janata Dal United camp to raise his voice against the amended citizenship law, on Monday waded right back into the political row over the law, the protests that erupted in Delhi and the assembly elections on February 8.

In a tweet that appeared to be a sharp counter to Home Minister Amit Shah, Kishor said the EVMs in Delhi would only be pressed with love on 8 February.

“The jolt should be dealt softly so that brotherhood and harmony are not endangered,” Prashant Kishor tweeted in Hindi without taking any names.

8 फ़रवरी को दिल्ली में EVM का बटन तो प्यार से ही दबेगा। ज़ोर का झटका धीरे से लगना चाहिए ताकि आपसी भाईचारा और सौहार्द ख़तरे में ना पड़े।

Justice, Liberty, Equality & Fraternity ??

— Prashant Kishor (@PrashantKishor) 27 January 2020

The remark comes just a day after Amit Shah, who is leading the Bharatiya Janata Party offensive against Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi, told voters to press the Electronic Voting Machines with such anger that its current (poll result) is felt at Shaheen Bagh.

Prashant Kishor’s counter to Amit Shah isn’t his first. He has rebutted the Union Home Minister on more than one occasion during the last month over the citizenship law, remarks that have angered many within the Janata Dal United as well as the BJP.

JDU boss and Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has, however, rejected suggestions that the party take action against Prashant Kishor for going against the JDU line on CAA. Prashant Kishor-led political consultancy firm I-PAC, has teamed up with AAP for the Delhi elections.

Shaheen Bagh, a locality in south Delhi near Jamia Millia Islamia University, has been the epicentre of protests against the amended Citizenship Act that started last month after Parliament enacted the law to fast-track citizenship requests from non-Muslims from three neighbouring countries.

BJP leaders have been critical of the protesters, sometimes alleging that the men and women who have spent days and nights on the streets had been paid off by the Congress and other parties. Some BJP leaders such as the party candidate Kapil Mishra have also claimed that the protest was a threat to national security because it had been infiltrated by groups backed by Pakistan.

Amit Shah’s speeches at public meetings for the February 8 elections in Delhi have also underscored this narrative. “Your vote to BJP on February 8 will not only result in victory for the BJP candidate, but it will also secure the country and the capital, and prevent incidents like Shaheen Bagh,” Shah said.